Early indications -- including two reported flu deaths in Sacramento County -- are that the outbreak will be as serious here as it has been in the rest of the country, according to health officials.

"We expect that we'll follow the national trend,” said Dr. David Herbert, chief of infectious diseases and critical care for Kaiser Permanente in Northern California. “Now that it's gotten started, it'll probably be a bad flu season."

Concerning to Sacramento County health officials is that there have been two deaths attributed to the flu just as the season is getting started.

A spokeswoman for the county’s health department told KCRA 3 Wednesday that the county often records up to five deaths a year from the flu.

But, she said recording two deaths so early in the season could indicate higher numbers of deaths by the time the flu season winds down in late Feburary to early March.

Herbert is urging people to have a flu shot if they haven’t already.

He said while it’s not too late to get the shot, people should get it this week, partly because it takes up to two weeks to build immunity.

“If they wait another week or two, they're going to be most of the way into the flu season,” Herbert said. “If they get their vaccination then, by the time it takes effect, the flu season will be winding up and it won't do them much good.”

The flu season typically lasts up to six weeks, and is usually considered over by the end of February, Herbert said. The good news, Herbert said, is that the flu vaccine is a good match for the strain currently spreading.

The county’s health department is urging residents to stay home from work or school if they are sick and to frequently wash their hands.